(EXCLUSIVE) Bill Cosby Ex Lawyer Monique Pressley Represents Man Suing 50 Cent Over ‘Power’ Series
Bill Cosby Ex Lawyer Monique Pressley Represents Man Suing 50 Cent
theJasmineBRAND.com exclusively reports, Bill Cosby’s former attorney, Monique Pressley, is representing Larry S. Johnson and Blake Keller in a lawsuit for copyright infringement, fraud and breach of contract filed against Power TV series executive producers.
The suit names Mark Canton, Curtis Jackson, Randall Emmett and David Knoller, Power show creator and executive producer Courtney Kemp Abgoh, Starz Entertainment LLC, Anchor Bay Entertainment LLC, CBS Television and author Nikki Turner. In an exclusive statement, Johnson’s team explains:
Mr. Johnson first sued the Defendants in Virginia in 2015 without counsel, and now will continue the fight through this action seeking to put an immediate stop to, and to obtain redress for, Defendants’ blatant, purposeful and massive infringement of the copyright in Mr. Johnson’s two-part manuscript entitled “Tribulations of a Ghetto Kid”, edited by Mr. Keller. As he does with all of his works, Mr. Johnson wrote this protected work over 12 years ago under his pen name ‘The Ghost’. Both Mr. Johnson’s work and Power TV Show share basic elements such as the exploration of the life of an African-American protagonist drug dealer using his ill-gotten gains to transition into the realm of legitimate business. However, even beyond the basic elements, and the glaring likeness of the main character, Power TV show infringes so far as to borrow character names, plot lines, and nearly identical language from Mr. Johnson’s protected work, making one strikingly similar to the other. Defendants have brazenly and improperly exploited Mr. Johnson’s manuscript without authorization in order to further their own gain. This conduct must immediately be stopped and Plaintiffs Johnson and Keller must be compensated for Defendants’ wrongful acts.
Power is a crime drama television series airing on Starz. The show was created by Courtney Kemp Agboh and is produced by Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson. It premiered on June 7, 2014. The series follows James St. Patrick, nicknamed “Ghost,” owner of a popular New York City nightclub “Truth.” In addition, he is a major player in one of the city’s biggest illegal drug networks. He struggles to balance these two lives, and the balance topples when he realizes he wants to leave the drug ring in order to support his legitimate business. He also has to keep his marriage with Tasha (Naughton) and his relationship with AUSA agent Angela Valdez (Loren). With help from his partner in crime Tommy Egan (Sikora), he tries to manage a double life.
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